herbs

Has anyone tried herbs to help with mood swings? I currently use vitex and motherwort. I also take a bunch of supplemental vitamins and such. Omega 3 seems to really help. I have found that being able to let go of perfectionistic ideals helps me deal better with life. My first priority is to take care of myself. It took me two trips to the hospital to understand that. I am surprised to see so many posts in the forum about PMDD. I had that also. It is really hard after having a baby.

Be careful with herbs, especially if you live in United States. They are regarded as a food item and therefore, not regulated by any agency. There is no way to know for sure if what is on the label is what you are getting and they are big business. As recent events show, those whose main goal in life is to make BIG Money are not the most trustworthy individuals.
Also, some herbs interfere with medications, ie St. Johns Wort messes up some antibiotics and Ginko messes up some antidepressants. Just please be careful and let your doctors know what supplements you are taking.

As you can see, I use only more natural meds and no prescription meds. I have tried several prescription meds in the past but I have always had better success with natural. All 6 of my suicide attempts came while on perscription medication and I had 1 other very close call on prescription meds.

I have spent 100s of hours researching what and how much to take and ahe spent about 5 years experimenting on myself to come up with my current complicated complete health treatment program.

I buy nearly all of my supplements through http://www.swansonvitamins.com and have grown to trust their commitment to health. They also have links to educational sites.

Good luck finding a doctor that knows much about how the supplements interact with prescriptions. If you do find one please let me know. I currently do not see a psychiatrist because they have all just wanted to push the latest drug at me inspite of many disasterous experiences in the past.

Even the one I spent $1,500 out of pocket because he has a naturopath as a partner just pushed 4 drugs at me and led to a 12 week medical leave to get myself leveled back out after the roller coaster of moods the drugs triggered. (I am not a rich person and with my insurance I only have to pay $5 for most pdocs)

Sorry for venting, but of the 6 pdocs I've seen, only 1 actually helped me instead of making me worse and he no longer treats outpatients. Fortunately I have a great family doctor who is very supportive of my natural treatment plan. He looks at my mood charts even more than my therapist does.

I see a psychiatrist, an herbalist, and if needed a Licensed Social Worker (LCSW).

If one is a sexually active female who is taking any kind of oral contraceptive pill, one must be very careful with St. Johns Wort as it has been known to render the contraceptive inactive.
Quite an important/useful piece of information!

I also know about herbs and about psych help. I have gone to college to get my degree in psych - still can't spell it though!!. I was raised in the hippy age when natural was the thing. Kef takes a huge amount of herbs and vitamins and minerals. More power to you Kef - you are dedicated to staying alive. In my opinion Kef has done well to take care of self. I am just not dedicated to finding out which ones of all of the natural market would work for me and so I am still letting the doc "practice" on me. But, I am with those of you that are going the natural route or have found docs that do both. Mine does, they let me take some of the ones I want that help with bone and arthritis but I stay away from energy vitamins and herbs because they can interact with psych pills. I am new to mood tracker and I love it. So does my case manager. !!

MORE POWER TO YOU KEF!!! I beleive her. I used to take psyche meds and it landed me in the hospital. I started taking omega 3's and b vitamins and got better, Mind you this was months a go. Alot has happened between now and then. I am back at ground zero. The omega is not helping much. I cant go to my reg. doc bcuz I owe them a no show fee. I will probably go back i the hospital again. I cant afford supplements like I used to. People post good experiences with natural ways. Do ya get it?? To each its own. Warnings about this herb and that herb is like talking to a brick wall when people know that there life is on the line. Control issues will be found on forums and isnt that ashame. I'm gonna check out Kefs natural list of taking care of herself and take notes..Hey we are all trying things out.
With bipolar..only you know what the deal is....Docs are in it for money//pharmaceutical companies and such. My cousin is a psych doc..I was told about the kick backs. Mind you if a drug works for you..KEWLNESS!!

I have been too busy to post here in awhile so I thought I'd just update how my treatment plan is working. I had a work related injury in May that interferred with my exercise routine. Then I began to be the primary caregiver to a friend going through chemo therapy. I have only recently been able to resume my exercise habit that is a main antidepressant for me. Even without exercise and in spite of many stressful things in my life I have not had prolonged severe or moderate depression.

Also a new site that is helping me is www.druglessdoctor.com .